Posted in: 280 passengers trapped on train without heating for 6 1/2 hours See in context
PLAstic stops lots of human movement eventually.
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Posted in: On trial See in context
if you visit Bali, you might consider visiting him. prisoners live on handouts. it is unfortunate that so many of the readers have written negative comments about such a harmless activity. I feel truly sorry for those who condemn this guy.
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Posted in: Santorum: No apology needed for Koran burning See in context
Questions unanswered in the world press: Why were Korans left on a US base in an unsupervised area? How many were burned? How is it that the burning was discovered? Isn't that telling? Are Service personnel aware of Islamic laws concerning the Holy Koran? These are questions that might be addressed. The violence doesn't make sense unless the action was judged as an intentional violation.
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Posted in: Australian PM Gillard survives leadership challenge from Rudd See in context
He never had the focus of Goff, Hawk, or Keating. On the end Gillard will be remembered as a first.
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Posted in: Activist says his arrest focused world attention on dolphin hunt town See in context
I care about him. He's great for what he has done and he has achieved a great deal.
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Posted in: Obama apologizes over Koran burning at U.S. base in Afghanistan See in context
Makes me wonder why these books were so readily available for mistreatment. I mean, I keep my waste in a waste bin and my treasure protected. This isn't the first time a holy book has been burned. And it isn't he first time an accident, or cultural insensitivity, has lead to many deaths. yet why the blood letting that in the middle ages we recorded as witch hunts. In all this we can see that the local people believe that the military are interlopers. I don't think we should interpret the US president's apology as anything less than a real desire to throw cool waters on an obvious blaze.
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Posted in: Australian PM Gillard calls leadership ballot to deal with Rudd challenge See in context
They should marry.
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Posted in: Australian Foreign Minister Rudd resigns See in context
Drama queen? Why in DC after talks with Clinton? Seems this FM wants center stage.
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Posted in: Job interviews - 'Fools using a foolish method to pick fools' See in context
Most jobs people are interviewed for do not require skills beyond what most people have. The interview process mentioned is a cost effective way to identify complete ineptitude.
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Posted in: Falling snow sculpture injures woman at Sapporo Snow Festival See in context
61 is not old. The organizers will look after her for sure. At least 100 tourists visiting the snow festival (and commuters) were stranded on several JR trains yesterday for 8.5 hours just 20 minutes north of Sapporo. It was warm and the melt made the tracks unserviceable. That didn't stop JR letting all these people board the trains though.
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Posted in: Sapporo Snow Festival gets under way See in context
same problem every year. it need to be brought forward 2 weeks so temp is cooler. The warm air may be good foe looking but not for sculptures.
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Posted in: Australian police rescue PM, opposition leader from race protests See in context
'Visibly rattled Gillard' was handled by the lean cool body guard. While she probably had intentions of her own to maintain balance here, the freakish side show of security had other ideas. Hey, those shields all made it look pretty scary.
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Posted in: Do you consider the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd to be eco-terrorists? See in context
If they are terrorists, they certainly don't follow basic terrorist protocols of secrecy and surprise. I don't see any deaths to humans as a result of their activities. The volunteers are generally better educated and informed then the majority of people on this website (no offense intended). They attract millions of supporters who would then have to be similarly classified etc. etc.
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Posted in: U.S., Australia, NZ 'disappointed' over Japan whale hunt See in context
Australia, the greedy country, will never have the Will to stand up against revenue, hence the banning of SS and the lukewarm 'condemnations'. Support SS with funds and ignore hypocritically weak governments. Be an anarchist!
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Posted in: Charges filed against man for punching schoolboy during class See in context
I visited my kid's school. I asked about the pictures of the kids in the room. The teacher pointed out the classroom bullies. He laughed. Denial rules the world sometimes.
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Posted in: Is Japan's 2020 Olympic bid going up in smoke? See in context
If this bid fails specifically because of the tobacco issue, the government, whose share in JT is substantial, might think of other ways to raise money. Though the bid itself at this time is merely much-needed advertising-they may not be serious about actually hosting the Olympics at all. Remember they are giving away 10,000 tickets to visit Jpn too. The 50% of males who smoke, I believe, learn the habit on college campuses. The classic peer group. It would be interesting to see a study that showed how people got started because school kids are taught the horrors of smoking in their government-regulated curriculum. As long as the government relies on the revenue though, smoking rates in Jpn will remain among the highest in the world.
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Posted in: Japan whaling authorities sue Sea Shepherd in U.S. See in context
The only terror I see is perpetrated on whales. The stereotypical bullying behavior I see reminds me of the exposed coward who runs to the school teacher when he gets hurt in a fight he started. Donate and defy the miserable Australian government. Support the admirable work of SS, most of us in our hearts would like to be there. These heroes put themselves in the line of danger. Respect their efforts and decease from calling them terrorists.
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Posted in: Indonesia releases Australian drug teen See in context
Police in Bali have long been known to pay informers to identify buyers.
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Posted in: Aya Ueto wins Fur of the Year award See in context
Should we go after the dealers not the users?
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Posted in: Japanese viewers tuning out, turning off their TVs See in context
TV is dead.
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Posted in: A culture shock – generosity isn’t free See in context
Makoto, those people you mention who have no respect for authority is a pseudo observation. What you are expecting to see is people respecting seniority (taken for granted) as in Japan, but that does not exist to anywhere near the same degree in Western countries. Rather, integrity is respected, like values are respected and in multiculturalism it is hard to pin these down. Also, Westerners have a different basis for social interaction: not deference like the Japanese but camaraderie. hence the appearance of roughness. Also, do not look for respect in overt linguistic behavior (including non-verbal) like you do in japan; this is considered mindless. Another point, I think what bothers many of your readers is that Japanese tend to 'discover' things about themselves when they go abroad. Often the focus becomes politeness but as your readers will tell you, it is hilarious when a Japanese person tells you how polite they are. What they often define as politeness is encoded in social norms hence lacks the integrity I mentioned. We really are quite different.
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Posted in: A culture shock – generosity isn’t free See in context
Politeness is basically political behavior; never heart felt, though it can be for the naive: not to be mistaken with empathy and compassion.
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Posted in: A culture shock – generosity isn’t free See in context
The writer seems to have summed the perplexity in in paragraph one. Politeness is strategic behavior. In Japan, it is expected that you repay politeness in kind; in the US it is seen as attrition and more superficial--so why play the small game necessarily when their are larger stakes. Hence the expression; wolf dressed as sheep etc. etc.
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Posted in: Cyclists feel under siege with new rules See in context
Do the obvious; invest money in carefully produced and long running TV commercials that educate drivers and cyclists on rights and responsibilities. It worked very well in Australia, why not here? 2. have police go to schools and give lectures to assemblies etc. etc. The main problem is people don't know what is expected of them..
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Posted in: Qantas flights resume but fallout escalates See in context
Glad Qantas Leadership had the Integrity to make a stand against dumbing-down & crippling union demands. WELL DONE!!!
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Posted in: Dalai Lama visit See in context
The literature has had a positive influence on millions of lives but why are so few people willing to look at the man critically? He has become a pop figure as a result and it is difficult to take some of his concepts seriously.
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Posted in: Adopting English as workplace language in Japan has its downside See in context
The basic economics behind this can be read in greater perspective in Reimagining Japan. The CEOs who were among the authors of the book argued that Japan needs to REfocus outwardly rather than domestically; look at Korea's approach for instance. They see this as the way Japan can survive in a globalizing economy. The important point of all of this (to the Nihonjinron) is that you do not loose your L1 language skills by using L2.
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Posted in: Qantas in turbulent public showdown with employees See in context
I don't get how anyone could call Australia socialist. At the same time, it is true unions have always crippled the economy but also true it is almost impossible to live on wages in Australia, hence the 20% living below the poverty line. Unions are working within a system that allows them to thrive.
2 ( +2 / -0 )
Posted in: Protesters in Tokyo join 24-hour global 'Occupy Wall Street' movement See in context
tokyokawasaki
Thanks for those links (above), clearest assessment yet! I sincerely hope more protest.
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Posted in: Japan to go ahead with whaling despite activist threats See in context
Just donated on Sea Shepherd website.
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Posted in: N Korean leader Kim slams U.S.-S Korea-Japan partnership and vows to boost his nuclear program
Where we live now the zoning laws were changed a long time ago so that chickens are not allowed. We…
Posted in: Soaring egg prices in U.S. piquing interest in backyard chickens
France doesn't have a far left migration policy either. France's far left does.
Posted in: Anti-far-right protest draws 250,000 in Munich
I will be watching the Puppy-Bowl.
Posted in: Trump, Swift join Super Bowl party as Chiefs chase 'three-peat'